Best Before Broken
by Inuyasharocks01862
Summary: Hiccup Haddock is a patient in a local hospital after getting into a car crash. He now suffers from having a weak heart, and short term memory loss. When he starts to fall in love, and redescovers his sibilings, how will he remember them..? Modern AU
1. Chapter 1 Best Before Broken

Disclamer: I don't own the characters of How To Train Your Dragon, nor do I own Una or Boden, they belong to my friend Kelseyalicia

A.N. this takes place in the fictional city of Dragon City

"Mister, um, Haddock, sir...? Are you awake?" The nurse asked very carefully. The boy in the room was very fragile now, and he was very pale. He couldn't remember anything, actually, except he remembered who he was. He knew that he was in a car crash, and that due to that he was hospitalized for having a weak heart, and newly acquired short term memory loss. What he didn't know is if he had any family, or if he had any friends. He simply knew; he was him, and that's all he could be no matter how hard he _wanted_ to be someone else.

"I'm awake.." Hiccup said slowly as he looked out the window. "It feels so weird sitting in here... I wish I could be one of those people that remembered the things they did throughout their lives, and the people they spent their time with, and where the live, what they eat, even. I don't even know what I had for breakfast this morning anymore..." He said, looking down at his missing left foot." Hiccup said, breaking down into tears slowly. He saw some people come in his room, and while they had something familiar about them, he didn't know them... or did he?

"Hiccup, big brother, hey." The blond-haired one said to him. There was only three people here, besides him, not including the nurse who was almost out of the door at that point. "We talked to the nurse before we came. It seems like you're not remembering anything... So, my name's Una. I'm your little sister, fer sure." Una said with a ridiculous grin on his face. "This ridiculously sexy girl is Astrid." She said.

"This here is Boden. He's your little brother." Una said, pointing at the only boy in the room.

"I... I'm terribly sorry to say that I don't remember any of you." Hiccup said, looking at his sister with a distressed face. Una, however, didn't know whether to laugh or cry. She looked at Hiccup sadly, before looking down. "I-I'm really sorry, but I do have short term now... I doubt I'll even remember this conversation soon." Hiccup said, frowning deeply.

"Hiccup. Brother, don't forget me." Una said, tearfully. "It's like, you're in a car crash and you forget your sibilings and best friend? That's not right. But, then again, you did hit your head pretty hard.. I was so scared when I heard you got hospitalized that I wanted to cry. I wanted to sit down and _cry._

"Anyway so Hiccup, are you remembering anything about your sibilings, also known as us?" Boden asked hopefuly. Hiccup shook his head sadly and Una frowned. "Aww, man, that's too bad. We had some fun times together." Una said, sighing lightly.

Hiccup looked at Astrid, and he could feel his cheeks turning red, so he hid under the covers. He knew this wasn't going to be good for him, but he was going to pretend that he had forgotten them. "W-Who are you...?" He asked, uncovering his eyes and hiding his still flushed cheeks while secretly staring at Astrid. They frowned lightly, as they had just gave him introductions not to long ago.

"Y-You forgot us already?" Una asked, and Hiccup made the best possible confused face that he could make. Una was going to say something else, but Hiccup, who had been staring at Astrid for awhile, messed up his heart rhythm, and started to look light headed. He reached for a button, but he couldn't reach it.

"U-Uh," Hiccup said, almost breaking down in tears. "C-Can someone press that button...?" He said, pointing at the button that he had been trying to reach. Right after he said it, Astrid dashed to the button and hit it as fastly as possible. Boden and Una stared at him all 'What the hell, Astrid?' because everyone thought that Astrid didn't particularly like Hiccup. Apparently that wasn't true. A nurse came rushing in.

"Mr. Haddock? Did you take your medicine today? No.. of course not you have to take it with food and you forgot it at breakfast..." The nurse walked out of the room in a hurry, Hiccup screaming from the intense pains in his chest. She came back with food and a rather large pill for Hiccup. "Take this," she said, handing Hiccup the pill. Hiccup took it quickly, hoping it would actually help him, instead of taking forever to work, and start working when he didn't need it anymore. Hiccup slowly became less pale, although he was pretty pale in the first place. "Well, if Mr. Haddock doesn't remember you, then you should probably leave... I don't want him to start freaking out and thinking that there are odd civilians in his room.." The nurse said, laughing a little at her own joke.

She started walking out of the room, directing the three out, but Hiccup called her back and she told them to wait there as she walked over to Hiccup, looking at him sweetly. Before she could ask what he needed or why he called her, he pulled her down to whisper in her ear. "I want to know if Astrid can stay in here... please? I haven't forgotten them, but I can't handle three at once." He said, frowning lightly as he looked at the three, taking a longer time to look at Astrid than the rest of them. She thought about it for a little, then nodded her head at the small teen. He celebrated a little inside his head, but was sure not to show that he cared a little bit _too_ much.

The nurse explained that for now, only Astrid would be able to stay in the best way that she could, without telling any of the three that Hiccup had wanted only Astrid in the room with him at the time. That wouldn't be easy to explain, even if they could already tell that Hiccup had taken a liking to Astrid from the minute that he saw the female. Astrid looked suspiciously at the boy who was laying on the bed, looking a bit to helpless for his own good.

"So, tell me, Hiccup, why am I the only one she allowed to stay, and not your brother and sister? Does she have something against the others... or do you just have a _really_ bad attachment to me, already?" Hiccup didn't know how to answer these questions, nor did he _want_ to. He just wanted to spend time with the one that he had fallen in love with at first sight before he forgot her. That makes sense, right? Yeah, I'd say so. You don't want to forget someone that easily when they're right in front of you, especially when you know that you can reach out and touch them at any time. It feels like they're slowly ripping pieces of you away from you, and that as you slowly forget things, you can no longer tell what actually exists and what doesn't.

"B-Beats me, Astrid. Maybe she just thought that you looked like you were the most mature out of the group... or she didn't want me to be lonely but she didn't want me to have too much attention at the same time. I don't know how she thinks, that woman," Hiccup said, sighing lightly. Astrid was such a beautiful person.

"Really? You don't know? That's funny, because even I know. In fact, it's hard to not know when you make it so _obvious._ It's easy to see that you like me, and I'm not just saying that because I have a big head. Fine, if you can prove to me that you're worth the effort, I'll go out with you. Once you can remember my name every day, I'll know that you're worth it." Astrid said with a slight smirk, thinking that it was impossible for me to do, I blushed, and I nodded. I didn't intend to let her win this, even though it's highly possible that she would have, anyway.

"It sounds like a deal to me. On Monday through Friday, I'm allowed to have two hours of visiting time. On Saturdays and Sundays I'm allowed to have three houurs. That's a total of sixteen hours per a week. I expect to be seeing you, Astrid." Hiccup said, smiling. He then lay in his bed as he fell asleep with the same grin on his face. Astrid looked at him with a small smile, then went to walk out of the room.

"It seems that we have an interesting deal, Hiccup. I can't wait to see how this turns out, especially with the way I feel about you." Astrid said, and looked at her small friend. She smirked lightly, and walked out of the room.

"Hey Astrid. We were just coming to get you. The nurse said that visiting hours for Hiccup were over already!" Una whined, sighing lightly. "Why did you get to stay?" She continued with her whining, but kept on smiling, anyway Astrid sighed. These next couple of weeks were going to be... interesting.

A.N. well this is the end of fanfics for today, I'll post more tomorrow

A.N.2 Their parents are still alive and Hiccup is 20, and has his license, he got hit in a hit and run by a drunk driver who hit his side of the car and left. Astrid offered to take Boden and Una to see Hiccup while there parents were busy with work and house chores.


	2. Chapter 2 break out

Disclamer I don't own the characters of How To Train Your Dragon

Day One – Break Out

Astrid burst into the room and glared at everyone, however most of the time she spent glaring was directed at the nurse. Not that I particularly cared that she cared, because someone had come to _visit_ me. I didn't know who it was at the time, all that was in my mind was the slight nostalgia that I felt when I saw her face. It slowly started to eat away at my mind, and I wasn't exactly sure what she wanted, and I also have no idea why she barged in like that, either. _It's not like she's a killer or something... is she? No... she looks fierce, but she's probably nice... Maybe... Possibly... I hope._ She looked at the nurse, while slowly a smirk appeared on her face. "Hey, nurse lady. Can I take Hiccup out of the hospital? And as for you, do you remember me yet?" We both shook our heads "no" at the same time. "Great; six down, seven to go." I gave her a confused face, and she walked over to me and smirked. "You're not getting out that easily. I'm _not_ telling you who I am," she sneered, and looked me over. I tried to remember who she was, but it was obvious that I couldn't just remember everything so easily. And then I did something that was stupid to me, but obviously pretty damn smart to her.

"Astrid, I swear to the good Lord that if you don't stop being so rude, I will..." I cut off. Her name was Astrid. I got it. I remembered the whole shebang from yesterday. I didn't think it would be this easy. I grabbed a piece of paper when she wasn't looking, and wrote down her name. Shoving the note into one of the crevices in the bed, making sure sure the nurse saw me, I then continued staring at my favorite person in the world, Astrid. I knew she wouldn't count this as a day I remembered her. Why? Because while, yes, I did remember, I had already told her that I had no idea what she was talking about... more or less, that is.

As soon as the nurse left, Astrid smiled devilishly at me. Shee walked over to my bed, picked me up, and ran over to the open balcony. _Oh no. Oh, please, no. Don't tell me she's going to..._ She jumped. Now, with my current state, I just kind of passed out in her arms. The last thing I can recall was her beautiful face. When I woke up, I had no idea where I was. I don't think it was the amnesia, either. I'm pretty sure it was Astrid's fault. I peeked around the room that I was now laying in, and noted the ax that was leaned against the desk on the right side of the room. Typical Astrid trait. But of course I didn't know that. I stood up slowly and walked over to the door of the room and out to the kitchen, where I saw an angry, blond-haired teen sitting. Yup, this is Astrid's apartment, in all it's surprisingly neat glory.

She looked up from her book, frowned, then looked back down at it. "Shouldn't you be laying down?" She said before flipping the page of the book she was reading. I thought about that question, then pouted. Sure, I should've been asleep, but I _also_ should've been in the hospital. And you know where I was clearly not? In the hospital? If that was your answer, you win! But Astrid did not care that I wasn't supposed to be out of the hospital, or else she wouldn't have brought me in the first place. But she did. And so now I'm with an easily and always pissed off girl who I somehow managed to fall in love with. I think, because it's not obvious enough by the fact that I lost my memories, that I hit my head a bit too hard in that accident. Oh well, there's nothing that I could really do.

"Shouldn't you have left me in the hospital, and, you know, not kidnapped me?" Astrid twitched lightly. This statement was slightly... unnerving. Though since I had the mind to make such smart remarks, Astrid probably figured I was fine. I hope. Maybe she just didn't care in the first place. Then again, maybe, just maybe, she decided that no matter how much she cared, her logic could not beat mine, since mine had such smart remarks, and hers just lacked. I hoped that's what it was. Though who am I to know?

She stood up and grabbed her car keys off the table, and then walked over to the door. "Are you hungry?" I nodded, and then followed her as she walked out the door and down the steps to the driveway, stopping when she got to her car. "Get in the carseat." I stared at him blankly.

"I'm not riding in a bloody carseat."

"Listen, you're either riding in that fucking carseat, or you're not going with me. And I won't be back for somewhere between three and four hours. Got it?" I clambered into the carseat after staring at her for another short amount of time, and pouted lightly. Though I knew that this would have no effect on Astrid. She probably enjoyed seeing me humiliated. Well, it wasn't exactly humiliation so much as it was embarrassment.

Being in a car with Astrid in this situation was hectic. Many things happened, but the ones that annoyed me the most were the things such as when I caught her looking over at me, snickering, and then looking away with a slightly confident face. And that happened when we reached anything that indicated her that we had to stop. She also continuously made comments on how "cute" I looked – which was weird coming from her, just because of her attitude – and also how all she needed now was a camera. On occasion, I'd catch her looking me over, her eyes wandering more... _slowly_ over the middle regions of my body, and then she'd turn her focus back on the road with a barely noticeable blush on her face.

After we finally arrived at the restaurant, it was my turn to be the spectator. I stared at Astrid for a few minutes, and if I even thought I saw her moving her eyes, I'd move my eyes in a different direction, making sure that they never even got close to aligning with each other. I knew Astrid was very aware of the fact that I liked her, but that didn't change the fact that I wanted to as few flustering moments with her as possible. I mean, she liked to use those against me at the most inconvenient times. But still, I couldn't seem to part my eyes from her body, they just kept tracing the outlines of her face and her other various visible body parts. _She's so... Shit. She caught me._

"Why the fuck have you been staring at me?" Astrid began. "Do I have something on my face?" I froze, then slowly began to nod my head. _Uh, yeah. It's called sexy. You should get that checked out._ I looked around the restaurant slowly while Astrid tried to locate and pick off whatever was on her face. _Good luck with that. Shit._ It was her. Not that I minded being around Boden but I did when I was with Astrid. This was not going to be good. I could just tell.

"Allen! What are you doing out of the hospi- Oh, it's Astrid, isn't it?" I nodded my head, and just giving me one of those 'I knew it' looks. But if he knew it, then why did he ask? Oh well, not my problem! Though it really was. I sighed gently, and then continued looking at Boden.(He was on a date with Asta) After that, pretty much nothing happen. We got our food, ate it, and then left. Apparently, she decided that we were not only going out to eat, but she was also going to the bookstore. After about five minutes, Astrid started to ignore me. In fact, I knew this because she _forgot_ me there. I'm so lucky that by wondering into the reading section of the store, I happened to find another familiar face. Una.(She stopped there on her way home from school)

It took me awhile to get her attention, and then she gave me this puzzled look. "Astrid kidnapped me and took me to eat, then here and forgot me." I explained. Una just nodded as if it were the most obvious thing in the world that this would happen. "Do you happen to have a phone, or money for a payphone?" Una pulled out a cellphone, which was really convenient, by the way, and called Astrid. (She has her number incase her parents can't get her from school, so Astrid can give her a ride home)

"Hey, you forgot your victim at the book store." The only thing that could be heard was loud cursing and things that probably, no, most likely were not words. Though she was back at the bookstore within three minutes. How this was possible, I did not want to know. It probably wasn't even legal; she lived somewhere around eight miles away.

I tilted my head to the ground. No one could know that it made my all warm inside to know that Astrid was protective over me. No one. "What's wrong?"

"Uh, nothing. Nothing's wrong. Why do you ask?" When I said this, I wasn't lying. In fact, what I said was so much the truth that it actually felt embarrassed. It was obvious that the next question would be asking why it looked like something was wrong. But that, my dear friends, is a story for a later time.

A.N. No one kill me for Astrid's ooc ness plz, I wanted to make her a badass, but might have made her seem rude.


	3. Chapter 3 nurses are a nuisance

Disclamer: I don't own the characters of How To Train Your Dragon, nor do I approve of the use of alcohol

When I woke up, I was in a bad mood. This was because Astrid decided to visit me at three AM. No memories from the day before were in my head, though it was only the second day of the bet, so it didn't really matter. Still, I'm wondering why she would come see me at three AM. At least he had a... somewhat logical excuse.

I looked at her with a grumpy face. "So," I began. "Let me get this straight. You're drunk, so you came here?" Kanda nodded, then glared at the nurse who was over in the other side of the room.

"Can't you g-," She looked down at me, then apparently changed her sentence. "Ahem. Can't you kindly get the fuck out?" Such a temper. Though, she was pretty good at hiding the fact that she was drunk. Because, well, her whole "fuck off" attitude is, and was, completely normal. Believe it or not, I kind of liked that about her. It's like, I felt more secure around her... or something. I can't explain it – it just exists. If I could explain how, with no memory of her, who she was, how she acted, or how I fell in love with Astrid, I would. I would tell everyone, and everyone would be knowledgeable on the topic.

The nurse, who was apparently still mad at her from the day before, shook her head and sat down on the bed in the other half of the room. "Hey, I need some time alone with him." However, the nurse was still cautious. You could see it in her face, and even though she left, you could tell she had a feeling that something would go wrong. "Hiccup…hmmm," she mumbled, the slur in her voice becoming more evident. I looked at her suspiciously, and it was like she could read my thoughts when he answered my mental question with, "I don't have to act sober around you; you're allowed to see me this way."

"Why are you drunk in the first place, Astrid?" I asked, and she looked back at me with a tired face.

"One word: Snotlout." After thinking for a bit, I remembered him. He was the boy with black hair that Boden and Una had brought with them a few days ago. "He dragged me along to a party, and I was there all of last night and all of today so far, except for when I got here. As for why I came here; well," I swear, at that point, his already flushed face got a bit pinker. "It just happened. That's it." I'm not sure if I believed her or not, but I found out the real reason later; she wanted to see me.

Is it just me, or... is Astrid nicer when she's drunk...? With that one, spontaneous thought I started my experiment.

"Say... Astrid, what do you think of me?" I had actually been wondering that for awhile, and, as she was drunk, I thought it'd be a good time to ask her.

For a long time, it looked like she was trying to think of a way to answer, until she finally started talking. "I think you're short. I think you're irritating most of the time. I think you're nosy." I looked down, and let out a soft sigh.

 _Why'd I have to-_

"I'm not done. I also think you're too clumsy and too adorable for your own damn good. You're short, which adds to your cuteness. You have an extremely innocent face, even with how perverted you are. You're smarter than I am, even though I don't treat you that way. I think the missing foot fits you perfectly and makes you beautiful and it shows you've been through hardships. I like your polite attitude toward everyone, even if you hate them. I like the way your smile seems to always be there, though I hate how you mask emotions- Confusing, huh?"

My face, stained with tears, still keeping up that plastered on smile, was red. "How can you care about me? I'm a one legged boy, a cripple." His face shot in my direction, quickly changing to an annoyed one.

"Hiccup. You're not a fucking cripple. I swear to god, if you say that again I'm going to prove it with unkind actions. And you know exactly what I mean."

I did know what she meant. To tell the truth, I kind of wanted it. Not that she would find that out any time soon, though. I sighed gently and looked at her, then broke off my smile. "Astrid, what's wrong with me? How is it my fault I became this way? Why do people hate me for it? And... why... did he leave me alone in this world?" That was the worst question to ask. I knew she couldn't answer it. No one could. But she was the first person to try.

"Hiccup... Listen to me. Stoick... he tried hanging on to life for you. When he gave up, he knew that even if you didn't think so, you were ready for the big, wide world. He knew that you'd find someone, some people, really, that would love you, for who you are and what you have. He knew you'd find me." I gave her a confused face, and she kissed me, which I replied to with a face that was red once again. "I love you, Hiccup." My heart rate sped up, and I could hear the nurses rushing in, noticing this inclination from the machine seated next to my bed, made to tell them when my heart was acting up.

"Sir Haddock! What's wrong?" They looked at the scene, worried faces changing to smiles.

"Nothing. In fact, everything's wonderful." They left again, and I looked down at a happy, yet tired Astrid. I ran my fingers through her hair and smiled. "Sleep, Cutie," I said, and she mumbled something before passing out. I followed shortly after, and sighed dreamily in my sleep.

– – –

When I woke up, I, oddly enough, remembered everything that happened earlier that day. However, Astrid did not. "Damn it!" I let out when she left for home. "I... wish I wouldn't have asked..." The rest of that day, even when Astrid came to visit, was spent crying.

– – –

So, this is the third chapter. Drunk Astrid is fun to write. Tho this won't be normal. :3


	4. Chapter 4 I can't see you

Disclamer I don't own the characters of How To Train Your Dragon

I could hear the doctor and Astrid arguing through the door. I was supposed to be asleep. Oh well; I'm not good at sleeping. They probably know this, or at least have realized that the majority of the time, I just lay there with my eyes closed, praying to some god that they may or may not have accepted; this I did not know.

"What do you fucking mean I can't see him?" Came the scream of Astrid, loud enough that there was a light rattling of my door. She sounded, truthfully, hurt...

"Er, Ms. Astrid, you can't see him right now. He has to sleep," the doctor said, playing cool as best he could. His calmness was becoming a falsity, and was running thin.

"But I'm his- He's my- my-..."

 _Your what, Astrid?_ My mind interrupted. After that, I heard her stomping away. But... After what happened the day before, I wasn't ready to see her.

The doctor walked back in, pretending that nothing had happened. He had not seen Astrid. He did not talk to, or about, Astrid. I suppose that was for my sake, though. Perhaps he didn't want me to know. He saw how rugged I was after Astrid came to visit me yesterday.

She came to visit me twice – once in the morning while drunk, the other late in the afternoon, unaware of what she'd revealed to me. That, solely, was my reason for crying. She was drunk, why would she remember? I suppose it was my fault, anyway, for asking that question.

But I knew I had to face her. And I could do it. The nurse that usually checks on me entered the room, and I put on one of the cheap, fake smiles that I had perfected an unknown amount of years ago. I know I was going against the wishes of the doctor, and most of the nurses, but I really did want to make things straight with her.

"Uhm, excuse me, but... Would you please take me to see Astrid? It's... It's important. I need to talk to her." I asked, uneasily. It was quite obvious that I had been shaken up just from thinking about the event, what was I going to do when speaking about it. And to make matters worse, I was going to be speaking about it with _her._

"The girl who had you crying all day yesterday? Why would I? Why _should_ I?" She questioned, and I frowned for yet another time that night. Astrid wasn't a bad person. She had a bad temper, and a cornucopia of different dialectal sour moods, and she was violent, and sometimes a jerk, and sometimes she had a habit of teasing, and- Okay, I could go on, but that's not helping. She was really a caring person, though. She is, still, one. But, unfortunately, her main exterior is that of a porcupine; no weak spots will be given.

I can understand why she was hesitant about letting me see her, too. I had to be put back on heavy drugs just to get back to a normal – for me – state. I had to sleep for so long, which is probably the reason I'm still awake, that when I woke up, I was so out of it that I thought I was still dreaming.

"Even though she made me cry... Even though she yells at me, and curses at me, and says she hates me... Last night, she said she loved me. Well, I should say yesterday morning, to be more specific." I sighed, and she nodded, listening to my woeful story that was probably more fit to be told in a teenage girl's diary than to a nurse in a hospital. "However... Later that night, when she visited a second time, she had no recollection of anything that she had told me earlier that day. Of anything I had told her..."

She placed a small hand on my back, and rubbed at it soothingly. "Listen, I can't take you out now. It's nearing midnight, and, you should be sleeping. But, I promise you, I will take you out to see her tomorrow, and I will inform her you're going to be coming. But it will only happen if you get your sleep, so rest up, Mr. Haddock."

I smiled softly, and let the fondness of the room take me in as I slowly fell asleep.


	5. Chapter 5 Not so for the better

Disclamer: I don't own the characters of How to train your dragon

 _Astrid's p.o.v_

 _Hiccup, Hiccup, Hiccup, Hiccup, Hiccup, Hiccup. That's all my thoughts have been since I have woke up. That's all my mind has allowed me to think. Because I couldn't see him, and, not including today, there's only two more days._

Sighing, I rolled over in my large bed, and flopped my face down in the pillow. I thought maybe I should try to get some sleep, but the phone was ringing by that point.

"Hello?" I asked, my irritation showing through my tone.

"Miss, um, Astrid?" There was a slight grunt of acknowledgment, to which the nurse continued. "Hiccup Haddock will be having an unmonitored visit with you at 2:15, if you're available." The nurse said to me, and I automatically said it was fine.

So, I hung up, and waited. And waited. And waited. And... Waited... I checked the clock for what I'm sure was the fifth or sixth time that same half hour. "It's six. He was supposed to be here nearly six hours ago. I'm going to find him."

And that's just what I did. I started by checking the obvious. The hospital. "Is a Hiccup Haddock here?" I asked.

Not that I really cared for her answer; I just started walking to the room which he was staying in. I didn't care to be polite; the boy was more important to me than being polite. Slowly, I walked in the room, and there was... just, laying there. "Hiccup?"

A hand was stuck on my shoulder, and I turned to see a doctor, shaking his head. It had been the same doctor that told me I couldn't see him the day before. "Astrid, he's, well... this morning, when the nurse got here, Hiccup was barely breathing. She called me and I got here as fast as I could, but..."

By the way his face looked, I could tell I was, this time somewhat unintentionally, glaring. "Are you saying he died?" Though I kept my composure, I was exploding in my head. I didn't want Hiccup to die.

"No... He went into a coma. The most we can do is hope he comes out, and keep him on the machines." I sat next to him, and bit at my lip. Placing a large hand over his smaller one, I smiled sadly. "How is it you look so beautiful, even in a state like this?"


	6. Chapter 6 Good night Hiccup Haddock

Disclamer: I don't own the characters of how to train your dragon

 _I know it was wrong of me. I wasn't supposed to see him. They said hearing my voice could pull him out of the coma... but also that it could throw him deeper into the trench his mind had him in. I know I shouldn't have gone. But I couldn't not see him. I... I mean, after all of what he put me through, I couldn't just let him go. Yeah. But everyone knows that's a lie. Especially myself. I stared at him for who knows how long that night. I just stared. I couldn't speak. No one would hear me but his struggling mind. I couldn't sleep. Sleeping would mean I wasn't completely there for him. I couldn't eat. I didn't have the strength, the will. I couldn't go home. Going home would be like giving up. They bring him three meals a day, and with it, three for me. They know I'm here. They don't want me here. But they also know they can't make me go. Still, that's six uneaten meals every day, plus the worried and disapproving looks from the nurses._

 _I know I shouldn't have cared so much. I know, I know he was just 'The dragon boy.' But to me, no matter how much I want to deny it, he was, he... is, worth so much more. I'm not going to get all sentimental and mushy or some crap like that, but believe me, I love him more than is to be expected out of a 'cold-hearted' person such as myself. No, I don't love him. I..._

 _Don't get me wrong. We fight. We argue. We bicker. And there have been numerous times – so many I've lost count – where I've wanted to beat him. I've strived to show my strength to him, my will, my power. To threaten him to show that I am strong, and I will fight for what I care for. I put up an illusion where I hated him. But it broke. Damn that driver. Damn the fact that he got into this damn accident. Damn the fact that he isn't okay. Damn him. Damn emotions. Damn everything. But most of all, damn me. Damn me to fucking hell. If anyone deserves this pain, it's me. Damn me for putting up the illusion, damn me for not helping him, damn me for losing ability to control my emotions..._ _Damn me for falling in love with him._

Astrid looked at the smaller boy, who was laying on the bed; limp, stiff. He was, if not for the attached emotions and a beating heart, the perfect porcelain doll. Fair skin, beautiful hair, beautiful green eyes. He had his deformities, but Kanda knew that they just made the small boy even more desirable. More unique. More loved, and unloved, than any normal person – or in this case, any normal doll. Astrid knew Hiccup was who he was because of those deformities, and because of that, he wouldn't have Hiccup lose it if given the chance.

It was a cruel, selfish way of thinking. But Astrid couldn't help it. If given the chance, would he save Stoick for Hiccup? Would she want to? Would she want to put Hiccup out of his misery, back into happiness? No. Astrid couldn't stop it even if she tried. He couldn't save Stoick, and she couldn't save Hiccup's once innocent self. She could save the facade, the broken mirror of the boy, maybe. She could save who Hiccup was now. He could make sure Hiccup kept walking. But would she change Hiccup? No. Astrid always thought that things happened for a reason. This accident happened so they could be together. This coma was just a test.

Astrid ran her thumb over the back of the pale white hand that she was holding yet again. She was crying. She was crying, because she couldn't help it. But she'd never admit to it. Of course, somewhere in the back of Hiccup's mind, he knew. He knew Astrid was there, with him, crying for him. Wanting to see him. Wanting to comfort him and tell him, "I'll be okay. I have to keep on walking, remember?" But he couldn't. It was like he was trapped in a lake – the water over him frozen, and the water he was in way too cold to swim. He was losing all senses, and quick. He saw someone above the surface, but he couldn't tell if they were laughing, or trying to help...

Frowning in disapproval, the nurse pulled at Astrid's hair. "What's the matter with you? You're a woman, aren't you? Straighten up. Get a shower, and eat some food. I know you love him, but for heaven's sake, do you think the first thing this boy wants to see when he wakes up is the ghost of one of his friends?" Astrid stared blankly at her, and shook her head lightly, and stood up carefully.

"Watch him. I will be back in one hour. If anything happens, call me. You know my number." She'd been here a few times herself; training too hard without eating, or getting large injuries from fights, things like that. But she wasn't dumb enough get hit by a car. She opted to go home, take a shower, get some food, and a nice big cup of coffee.

On the way home, she was struggling to stay awake. She hadn't slept in over thirty hours. And she knew, oh, how she knew, it was way past Hiccup's seventh day. She'd won the bet... But she also liked playing fair, and she thought the brat should be given an extension, seeing as how he couldn't even talk. He couldn't do anything. And, Astrid wondered, what was Hiccup dreaming about? Was he dreaming about anything? Was he dreaming about Astrid? It's not like she cared, she would just... use it to blackmail him later or something... Or, she would be happy, because even while in denial, she still loved her 'dragon'.

She laughed slightly. "If Hiccup knew what I was thinking about right now, he would kill me..." Astrid's mouth twisted up a bit in a slight smile, which quickly faded. "If only he could know..." The smile completely faded, leaving no trace it was there in the first place; running away from the girl that didn't truly know how to smile. From the girl that wasn't ever truly happy, she supposed. Until she met the damned dragon. Until she fell into the trap that she would never admit was love. Astrid Hofferson did not fall in love. She fell in denial.

Pulling into her driveway, she put the car into park, and slowly got out. Shaking the worry out of her thoughts, she walked into her residence, heading straight for the kitchen. Slipping off her shoes near the door, she walked to the kitchen counter, and looked at the answering machine – rather, glared at the answering machine. Six messages. Six messages that right now, she could not give even _one_ damn about. Regardless, she pressed the green 'play' button, and listened to the voices pouring out. She tapped her fingers impatiently, as the voice said, ' _Six unheard messages. First unheard message...'_

" _Hey Astrid, how's Hiccup? I haven't been down there 'cause my dad's been keeping me busy... Something about 'Not wanting me to bother you and his alone time'... I think he's crazy. Anyway, call me back._ " She sighed, and skipped to the next message.

" _Um, um,"_ there was a pause for a muffled noise in the background, and a mumbling. " _Astrid... It's Hiccup... I was hoping I could talk to you. It's late, and sorry for that... But I just feel sick and... lonely... and I don't know, I was hoping you'd be up... Cause I snuck a phone call... I'm sorry, I suppose."_ There was a lot of sniffling, and Astrid could tell that the boy'd been crying. But since her answering machine had no dates, she didn't know when the message was from. She stared at it, not sure whether to be worried or not care. And even if she chose to 'not care', she knew it would just end up as her caring more than she intended to anyway. She stopped the message, replaying part of it. " _It's Hiccup._ " Though the cheer wasn't in his voice, it was still Hiccup. Still her Hiccup...

Drowsily, she walked around the island bar and to the fridge; not that she was hungry anyway. She opted instead to have just a protein shake and a granola bar – both of which he kept around, being the health-conscious person that she was. "Goddamn, what I would do to hear your actual voice again..." She went to her small room, and flopped onto her bed, and before resting her eyes, she turned her cellphone volume all the way up and put the phone on the charger.

She slept. She slept, and slept, and slept. Six hours, until at five-thirty-two AM, she received a phone call. "Mmh, 'llo?" She grumbled, not entirely awake. she shook her head gently and sat up slowly, figuring now was as good a time as any other to get out of bed. She went to her dresser, and started to strip herself of the clothes she was wearing before she'd slept. She felt slightly less tired, but now had more room to be grumpy.

" _Astrid? Astrid Hofferson_?" There was an affirmative grunt from said girl, and then the person on the other line continued. " _I'm afraid Hiccup's taken a turn for the worse..._ " Astrid's heart skipped a beat. She froze. " _Can you-_ " The line cut out as Astrid flipped her phone shut, not wanting to talk to anyone, but instead wanting to get to the hospital. She quickly changed and put her hair up, not bothering to eat before she left. Grabbing only her phone and her keys, she pulled quickly out of the drive way, and to the hospital.

She rushed into the hospital, and toward the room which she knew Hiccup would in. She looked at the beautiful pale face, wearing an oxygen mask, and a frown too deep for Astrid's comfort. He was swarmed with nurses and a doctor. "His heart rate is going down rapidly." A nurse explained, and Astrid looked at the machines that were crowded around Hiccup. She asked for a moment of privacy with the boy, as she heard the machine let out one, long, slow, beep.

Tears were quietly slipping down the elder's face. But she wasn't crying. Astrid didn't cry. "God, Hiccup. I can't believe you left me like this... I..." She wasn't in love. "I love you." It was just denial, really. "I love you so fucking much, Hiccup Haddock." Really. She wasn't in love.

Hiccup's hand slowly unfolded, revealing a small piece of paper. ' _Astrid Hofferson._ ' Frowning softly, Astrid looked down at the boy. She leaned down and placed a soft kiss on Hiccup's head. "Good night, Hiccup Haddock..."

Hiccup twitched lightly and opened his eyes, feeling as if an enormous weight was being lifted off him. "Mmh... What's... What's going on...?" He mumbled, and looked up to see a crying Astrid. "Astrid... What's... What's happening? Where am I...? I feel like... I feel like I was out-" Before he could finish whatever he was about to say that Astrid could not honestly care less about, Astrid kissed him hard on the lips. "Astrid, what are you...?"

Astrid just smiled, she actually smiled, and looked down at the boy. "I love you, Hiccup Haddock." Hiccup, face flushed, kissed Kanda back, softly.

"I love you, too, Astrid..."

Astrid smirked, and pushed Hiccup back so he'd lay down. "Welcome back to reality."

Hiccup looked at her questioningly. "What are you talking about? I wasn't out that long..." Hiccup sighed, and entwined his fingers with the girl, looking up at him. "But thanks for being here for me."

"You have no idea, dragon boy." A smile twitched at Hiccup's lips. She had her Hiccup back, and that was what mattered. Oh, but just to make this clear, she wasn't in love. Really.


End file.
